Last chances to see Oscar nominees

Awards season in the film industry kicked into high gear with January's 71st Golden Globes, promptly followed by the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards for performances in film and television.

Pat De Mono

Awards season in the film industry kicked into high gear with January's 71st Golden Globes, promptly followed by the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards for performances in film and television. And, sandwiched between those two presentations, came the official nominations of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the grand-père of all award shows — the Oscars.

Scheduled for March 2 at Hollywood's Dolby Theatre, the 86th Academy Awards (nicknamed "Oscars," it is said, when an Academy librarian commented that the statuette resembled her Uncle Oscar) will recognize achievements in cinema covering some 25 categories, culminating in the brass ring of movie-making: the Academy Award for Best Picture.

If you missed the nominated films' first run in theaters, it's still possible to see this year's crop of contenders before the Oscar broadcast. Some will be released on DVD and Blu-ray; others will have second runs in area theaters. One ("Captain Phillips") is already available on Netflix.

Of the nine Best Picture nominees (films had to be the number one choice of at least 5 percent of Academy voters), six are based on true stories. To date, these nine films have collectively earned more than $650 million at the domestic box office.

"Captain Phillips"Rated: PG-13Starring: Tom Hanks, Barkhad AbdiNominations: 6Plot: Retelling of Somali hijackers' seizure of the U.S. freighter Maersk Alabama off the Horn of Africa in 2009.Where to find it: Available on DVD/Blu-ray and on Netflix.